Heather Nova is the professional name of Heather Allison Frith (born July 6, 1967), a Bermudian singer-songwriter whose music combines alternative rock, folk rock, and atmospheric pop. Known for her expressive vocals, acoustic and electric guitar work, and introspective songwriting, she built an international career that has remained closely connected to independent music culture while also reaching mainstream audiences in Europe and North America.
Nova was born in Bermuda to a Bermudian father and a Canadian mother. She spent much of her childhood aboard her family's sailboat, traveling through the Atlantic and Caribbean. She began playing guitar and violin at an early age and wrote songs while still young. As a teenager, she moved to the United States and later attended the Rhode Island School of Design, where she earned a degree in film in 1989. During her studies, she composed music for student films, an experience that helped shape her interest in combining music, imagery, and atmosphere.
After a short period in New York, Nova moved to London and began performing in pubs and coffeehouses. Her first recordings were issued under her birth name, Heather Frith, including the 1990 EP *These Walls*. She adopted the name Heather Nova for the 1993 EP *Spirit in You* and her debut album, *Glow Stars*. Produced by Felix Tod, *Glow Stars* established the intimate, guitar-centered sound that would remain central to her work. The live album *Blow*, released the same year, documented the directness and intensity of her early performances.
Nova's wider breakthrough came with *Oyster* in 1994. Produced by Youth and Felix Tod, the album expanded her sound with fuller rock arrangements while retaining the emotional focus of her songwriting. Songs such as "Walk This World" helped bring her to a larger audience, and she followed the album with an extensive touring schedule. *Live from the Milky Way* appeared in 1995, preserving another chapter of that touring period.
Her third studio album, *Siren*, arrived in 1998. The record produced the recognizable single "London Rain" and received additional exposure when Nova's music appeared in American television programs including *Felicity* and *Dawson's Creek*. She also took part in the Lilith Fair touring festival and contributed recordings to film and television soundtracks. Her version of "Gloomy Sunday" was associated with the film *Gloomy Sunday*, while other songs appeared in projects such as *The Craft*, *The Crow: City of Angels*, *I Am Sam*, and *Serendipity*. The live collection *Wonderlust* followed in 2000.
Nova continued to develop her sound with *South* (2001), *Storm* (2003), and *Redbird* (2005). *Storm* featured members of Mercury Rev as backing musicians and reached the Top 20 in several European countries. Around the same period, Nova published the book of poetry and drawings *The Sorrowjoy*, later also released as a spoken-word album.
Her later work has explored both stripped-down acoustic textures and more expansive rock production. *The Jasmine Flower* (2008) was recorded with environmentally conscious methods, while *300 Days at Sea* (2011) returned to a fuller band sound. *The Way It Feels* (2015) incorporated Americana influences, and *Pearl* (2019) revisited the rock-oriented character associated with *Oyster*. She followed it with *Other Shores* (2022), a collection centered on cover versions, and *Breath and Air* (2025), an album of new material recorded with producer Chris Bond.
As of September 2026, Nova's official website lists *The Orchard* as scheduled for release on October 30, 2026. Across more than three decades, her work has been marked by a consistent blend of poetic lyrics, emotionally direct performances, and a willingness to move between intimate singer-songwriter writing and atmospheric alternative rock.